“What we’re seeing here in Myanmar is a level of devastation that hasn’t been seen over a century in Asia,” the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) wrote in a post on X.
“This is not just a disaster; it is a complex humanitarian crisis layered over existing vulnerabilities,” Alexander Matheou, regional director for Asia Pacific at the IFRC, said in a separate statement.
“The magnitude of this disaster is substantial, and the need for support is urgent,” he added. The IFRC has launched an emergency appeal for 100 million CHF ($113.6m; £87.3m) to assist 100,000 people with life-saving relief and early recovery support.
The Myanmar Red Cross Society (MRCS) has mobilised hundreds of trained volunteers to provide relief in the form of first aid, health care and the distribution of items such as blankets and hygiene kits.
But the UN says aid operations are being hindered by damaged roads and that hospitals in central and northwestern Myanmar in particular are struggling to cope with the influx of people injured in the earthquake.
In some of the country’s hardest hit areas, residents have said that government assistance was scarce so far, leaving people to fend for themselves.
Myanmar’s military junta has put out a rare call for international aid. India, China and Thailand are among Myanmar’s neighbours that have sent relief materials and teams, along with aid and personnel from Malaysia, Singapore and Russia.
The time is about 21:22 in Mandalay, Myanmar, and 21:53 in Bangkok, Thailand. Here is a round up of what has happened today:
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About 1,700 people have died as a result of the Myanmar earthquake with at least 300 people having been reported missing, according to the country’s ruling junta (the military government).
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About 3,400 are injured, according to officials, with the death toll expected to rise significantly.
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The Red Cross said the devastation is the worst seen in Asia in more than 100 years.
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The United States Geological Survey (USGS) reported that a 5.1 magnitude aftershock hit 28km (17.4 miles) northwest of the central Myanmar city of Mandalay earlier today, the latest in a string of aftershocks.
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The initial 7.7 magnitude quake struck near Mandalay early on Friday afternoon, followed minutes later by a 6.7-magnitude aftershock.
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The earthquake affected parts of neighbouring Thailand, bringing down an under-construction skyscraper and killing at least 18 people across the capital, according to Thai authorities.
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At least 76 people remained trapped under the debris of the collapsed Bangkok building, where rescue operations continued for a third day. At least 11 people were killed as a result of the collapsed skyscraper.
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Critical infrastructure – including bridges, highways, airports and railways – across Myanmar has been damaged, slowing humanitarian efforts.
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India, China and Thailand are among Myanmar’s neighbours that have sent relief materials and teams, along with aid and personnel from Malaysia, Singapore and Russia, among others.
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Anti-junta fighters in Myanmar have declared a two-week partial ceasefire in earthquake-affected regions starting on Sunday. The military, however, reportedly continued airstrikes after the earthquake, including just hours after it first hit.
Thanks for following along today. We are now closing this blog.
A pregnant woman pulled from a collapsed apartment block in Mandalay, Myanmar’s second-largest city, on Sunday after more than 55 hours under the rubble was pronounced dead shortly after she was freed, according to journalists from the Agence France-Presse (AFP) news agency at the scene.
Rescuers thought they had saved the life of Mathu Thu Lwin, 35, but they were unable to resuscitate her after extracting her from the wreckage of the Sky Villa apartment complex, demolished by the powerful quake that hit Myanmar on Friday.
The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration has issued a press release with updates about the earthquake. Here is a summary of what was said:
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18 people in Thailand have been killed by the earthquake (11 were killed as a result of the collapsed skyscraper in Bangkok, the area in Thailand worst affected by the quake)
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Rescuers have detected signs of life under the rubble at the collapsed building site in the Thai capital
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Officials are conducting building inspections across the Bangkok metropolitan area
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Traffic conditions in Bangkok are gradually improving. Din Daeng Expressway is expected to reopen early tomorrow morning
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People injured by the earthquake or those whose properties have been damaged by it will be entitled to compensation
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Essential services such as hospitals are back operating at full capacity in Thailand
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Parents are advised to check with schools to see if they remain closed
Myanmar on Friday (it struck nearby the country’s second largest city, Mandalay, at about 06:20 GMT):
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Thailand: Rescue teams and aid have been arriving from donor countries around the world, with Thailand dispatching 55 military personnel and six rescue dogs, along with equipment including cranes and diggers, earlier today.
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China: Beijing has sent an 82-person team of rescuers to Myanmar on Saturday, Beijing’s emergency management ministry said. The Chinese government will also provide Myanmar with 100 million yuan ($13.8m) in emergency humanitarian assistance, with shipments to begin Monday, its international aid agency has said.
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Hong Kong: A 51-person team from Hong Kong has arrived in Myanmar. The city also sent two search and rescue dogs and nine tonnes of equipment, including life detectors. The city has earmarked HK$30m ($3.8m) for emergency relief support to Myanmar, it said in a statement.
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India: An Indian aid flight landed in Myanmar on Saturday, with more on the way. India’s foreign ministry said a military transport plan, accompanied by a search and rescue team, had been dispatched carrying hygiene kits, blankets, food parcels and other essentials. Four more aircraft were being sent with personnel and equipment, including a field hospital, as well as two navy ships, officials said.
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Malaysia: Malaysia’s prime minister, Anwar Ibrahim, said his government has decided to “channel humanitarian assistance totaling RM10 million ($2.2m) to the people of Myanmar” affected by the tragedy. The country’s foreign ministry said it would send a 50-person team to Myanmar “to support ongoing humanitarian and disaster relief operations”.
Other countries that have sent rescue teams and/or said they would be sending aid include Vietnam, Russia, the US, Indonesia, Ireland, Britain, South Korea, New Zealand and the Philippines.
spoken to Al Jazeera about the humanitarian crisis following the deadly earthquake.
He said:
The needs in the country are enormous. This was already a humanitarian crisis before the earthquake and this event has just exacerbated what already was a very difficult situation for the population.
This is a country that already had over 19 million people requiring humanitarian support because of the ongoing conflict which has been raging for the last four years.
We are hopeful that with international support we can respond and that we will be given the facilitation required from the authorities to reach the population.
Sadly, Myanmar has been on a gradual decline over the course of the civil war. This is just going to make the situation even more difficult. We need to be able to reach the population, we need to be able to move into areas that we previously haven’t had the access required.
Only with this ability we will be able to provide the type of humanitarian support the population of Myanmar desperately requires at this point.
in our post at 9.15am BST, efforts to locate survivors have been hampered by aftershocks – and an apparent lack of robust rescue equipment.
One rescue worker said most operations in the city were being conducted by small, self-organised resident groups that lack the necessary tools.
Rescue personnel at the site of a building that collapsed in Mandalay. Scores of people are feared to be trapped across the city.
“We have been approaching collapsed buildings, but some structures remain unstable while we work,” he said, asking not to be named because of security concerns.
Scores of people were feared trapped under collapsed buildings across Mandalay but most could not be reached or pulled out without heavy machinery, another humanitarian worker and two residents said.
“People are still stuck in the buildings, they can’t take people out,” said a resident who also asked not to be named.
mass destruction seen in the city of more than 1.7 million people.
As officials and rescuers grapple with the devastation caused by the quake, the extent of the damage caused is only now becoming clear.
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies says critical infrastructure has been destroyed – including the historic Ava Bridge connecting Sagaing and Mandalay, Mandalay University and various heritage sites, the Associated Press is reporting today.
Myanmar sits on the major north-south Sagaing Fault, which separates the India and Sunda plates, and the widespread damage runs down a wide swath of the middle of the country.
Significant damage also has been reported in the Sagaing, Naypyidaw, Magway, Bago and Shan State regions, while telecommunications outages continued to hamper emergency coordination in several regions, the Red Cross said.
Aftershocks frighten Myanmar survivors while death toll from Bangkok high-rise collapse rises
The children at Bright Kids nursery in Kyaukse, a town south of Mandalay, were taking a nap when the earthquake struck on Friday afternoon. The two-storey building collapsed with dozens of children aged between two and four trapped inside. For hours, rescuers sifted through the rubble, searching desperately for survivors.
“We were clearing the building using diggers and rescuing people with manual tools,” said Thar Nge, a volunteer. They needed better equipment – metal cutters and generators – but made use of what they had. Thar Nge helped carry a four-year-old girl to safety. She pleaded, over and over, for him to save her, he said. He held a bottle of water to her mouth before her dusty body was freed.
The girl was among 12 children saved, along with four teachers. A further 16 children and a teacher were found dead. Thar Nge barely had time to feel any emotion.
Afterwards, his team of 11 volunteers moved onwards across Kyaukse, one of many areas devastated by Friday’s earthquake.
Similar scenes have played out across central Myanmar, with teams of volunteers using anything at their disposal to free survivors, digging with their bare hands and crawling through collapsed structures, often with no safety equipment.
according to Myanmar’s ruling junta. About 3,400 are injured with the death toll expected to rise significantly.
The Red Cross says the devastation is the worst seen in Asia in more than 100 years.
The United States Geological Survey (USGS) reported that a 5.1 magnitude aftershock hit 28km (17.4 miles) northwest of Mandalay, the latest in a string of aftershocks following Friday’s devastating earthquake.
The UN has warned rescue operations have been severely hampered by the blocked roads and collapsed buildings, adding that a lack of medical supplies is making the response to the earthquake much more difficult than it would be otherwise.
Source: theguardian.com
